Hidden Selling Power of Sales Stories Part 3:
What Types of Stories to Tell

Sales Champions have at the ready four different types of sales stories to use in their sales presentations.  Let’s take a closer look at “What” types of stories to tell.

Tell Your Story
Tell the prospect your story, which helps to build trust and rapport.  In fact, your story can make a large corporation seem more personal.  Think of insurance agents or financial advisors; they are literally the face of the company to their clients.  A powerful element of your story is what really motivated you to participate in the business.  Was it a sincere desire to help people?  What you include in your story must be relevant to the prospect and should flow logically in your sales presentation.

Tell Your Company’s Story
A vivid, well-told company story can help assure the prospect that your company is stable and well-run.  If your company is relatively new, the story can focus on innovation, faster response times, or better customer service.  The story about the company founder and mission can also be used effectively.

Tell Stories about Your Satisfied Clients
Sales stories about your satisfied clients provide “social proof” that your product or service claims are true.  Gather stories about each one of the benefits of service or product and then use them accordingly.

Tell Stories of Clients Who Chose not to Buy from You and now Regret It
These types of sales stories are very persuasive because they generate urgency in the prospect to buy NOW!  Also, these stories make clear the cost of waiting or doing nothing;  for example, in the real estate industry, you could tell a story about those who tried to sell their homes as: For Sale by Owner.  Their homes were on the market for over a year and, still they wouldn’t sell.  Eventually, they decided to use a real estate professional as the agent.

You Can Borrow Other People’s Scripts
If you are new to the business and don’t have many sales stories, you can borrow stories from colleagues to use in your presentation that are just as effective,  as long as you state that the story is from a co-worker that you can script into your presentation: “That reminds of a story.  My colleague, Bob, has a client named…” and then tell the story.

Use the Four Different Types of Stories in Your Presentations Today!

Be sure to read my next Blog Post.
Benefit Scripts Part 1: Tangible Benefits.